The Maribor District Court has sentenced former banker Matjaž Kovačič to three years and nine months in prison for abuse of office, while former magazine publisher Matej Raščan received a sentence of three years and five months for aiding and abetting.

The Foreign Ministry, a former employer of Slovenia's EU commissioner candidate Marta Kos, has rejected claims that internal proceedings based on workplace bullying allegations had been brought against her in the past.

Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon chaired two UN Security Council sessions this week and will take part in the annual general debate next week together with Prime Minister Robert Golob. It seems to her that Slovenia is mostly seen as a trustworthy chair of the Council, she told the STA in a recent interview.

Consumer confidence in Slovenia continued to deteriorate in September after an uptick the month before. The index was 4 percentage points lower than in August and 5 points under a years-long average, yet 5 points better than a year ago, the Statistics Office said on Friday.